Taking A Look at the White Sox Turnaround
Photo from @whitesox Twitter
After going 93-69 in 2021, the White Sox lost 3-1 in the ALDS to the Houston Astros. Their roster featured a lot of talent at the time: Yasmani Grandal, José Abreu, Tim Anderson, Yoán Moncada, Luis Robert Jr., Lucas Giolito, Dylan Cease, Lance Lynn, Carlos Rodón, Garrett Crochet, and Liam Hendriks.
In the ensuing four seasons, the White Sox fell on hard times. They went 243-405 (37.5% winning percentage) while having three seasons of at least 101 or more losses. The worst of it came in 2024, where they finished with a 41-121 record. Their once-exciting young core had largely disappointed, and they needed more young talent for their farm system.
Change was badly needed in the South Side. Two years later, that change has already paid huge dividends for the White Sox as they finished second in the AL Central with an 84-78 record and were the third Wild Card team in the American League. How did they manage to get to this point?
2025 Offseason
This trade could have prolonged their rebuild
The biggest move the White Sox made that offseason was sending their young ace Garrett Crochet to the Red Sox for Braden Montgomery, Kyle Teel, Wikelman Gonzalez, and Chase Meidroth.
For the White Sox, parting with Crochet allowed them to replenish a farm system that was only highlighted by Colson Montgomery, Edgar Quero, and Noah Schultz.
Teel and Montgomery were the Red Sox’s first round picks in the 2023 and 2024 MLB Draft, respectively. Meidroth was drafted in the fourth round of the 2022 MLB Draft. Gonzalez was signed as an international free agent by the Red Sox in 2018.
An under-the-radar move the White Sox also made was selecting Shane Smith from the Brewers in the Rule 5 Draft.
2025 Season
The 2025 season saw the White Sox take a step forward, as they finished 60-102 which was the second-worst record in the Majors, only ahead of the Rockies who finished 43-119.
Year of the promotion
The White Sox made several promotions in 2025: Chase Meidroth and Edgar Quero in April, Kyle Teel and Grant Taylor in June, Colson Montgomery in July.
Meidroth had a solid, if unspectacular first season as he hit .253/.329.320 with an 87 wRC+ in 122 games. He missed a little bit of time due to a thumb injury.
Quero’s first season in the Majors was decent, as in 111 games he hit .268/.333/.356 with a 96 wRC+. Quero also became the regular catcher for the White Sox.
In 36.2 innings, Taylor had a 4.91 ERA and 1.42 WHIP. Although the surface stats say Taylor was bad, his underlying numbers paint a different picture. His FIP was 1.42 and batters had a .420 BABIP against Taylor. He also showed an elite ability to get strikeouts while limiting walks as he had a 24.8% K-BB rate.
Teel played in 78 games and had a strong first season in the Majors. He hit .273/.375/.411 with a 125 wRC+. When he was promoted, he split time with Quero at catcher.
Montgomery was fantastic in 71 games in the Majors. He hit .239/.311/.529 with a 130 wRC+. It was impressive to see what Montgomery did especially given he was demoted to the Arizona Complex League earlier in the season after struggling mightily at Triple-A.
Smith would also go on to have an impressive rookie season, going 7-8 with a 3.81 ERA and 1.20 WHIP. He threw 146.1 innings while striking out 145. He was also named to the American League All-Star team.
2026 Offseason
The White Sox improved their win total by 19 wins from the year prior. They had taken a step in the right direction and made a lot of moves to take that next step forward in their rebuild.
They made a lot of signings during the offseason
The White Sox signed Anthony Kay to a 2-year, $12M contract. Kay would be returning to the Majors after spending the two previous seasons in the KBO.
They won the bidding for Munetaka Murakami and signed him to a 2-year, $34M contract. Murakami spent the last eight seasons in the NPB and was posted following the 2025 season.
They signed a couple of relievers as well: Sean Newcomb on a 1-year, $4.5M contract, Seranthony Domínguez signed to a 2-year, $20M contract, and they brought back Erick Fedde on a 1-year, $1.5M contract.
And they also made several trades
In December, the White Sox acquired Tristan Peters from the Rays for cash. At the time of the trade, the move would have been considered insignificant.
In January, the White Sox traded Luis Robert Jr. to the Mets for Luisangel Acuña and Truman Pauley. Robert had spent the first six years of his career with the White Sox and was owed $20 million in 2026 with a club option for 2027.
In a salary dump trade with the Red Sox, the White Sox got Jordan Hicks and a prospect in David Sandlin.
2026 Season
The White Sox were able to improve on their previous win total and won an additional 24 games. All the moves they had made during the offseason were panning out, and got some breakout years from a few players as well.
Their signings panned out very well
Kay was very serviceable for the White Sox, pitching to a 4.44 ERA and 1.37 WHIP over 158 innings while striking out 129.
Newcomb proved to be a valuable piece in the White Sox bullpen. He had a 3.09 ERA and 1.18 WHIP over 90.1 innings and 84 strikeouts. He operated in multiple roles whether it was as an opener, multi-inning reliever, or as a closer.
Domínguez was solid, if unspectacular with the White Sox as he recorded a 3.99 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 43 games. He would later be traded to the Mariners as part of a package for Luis Castillo.
In his return to Chicago, Fedde was effective. He threw 141 innings as a starter or bulk reliever and had a 3.83 ERA and 1.35 WHIP while recording 99 strikeouts.
Murakami was very productive in his first season in the Majors. In 127 games, he hit .207/.347/.478 with 35 home runs, 77 RBI and had a 129 wRC+. It was a tale of two seasons for Murakami however, as in the first half he hit .232/.371/.540 compared to .185/.327/.424 in the second half. Murakami was named to the All-Star team and participated in the Home Run Derby as well.
The trades were a mixed bag except for one
Peters, a former Savannah Banana, spent his first six seasons with the Brewers, Giants, and Rays. At the time of the trade, it would have been considered insignificant, but that turned out to not be the case. In 156 games, Peters hit .265/.337/.437 with a 118 wRC+. Peters earned himself a spot on the All-Star team.
Hicks put together a bounce back season after struggling the previous two seasons. He had a 3.94 ERA albeit with a 1.54 WHIP in 48 innings while striking out 64.
Acuña did not perform very well in the Majors while Sandlin appeared in eight games for the White Sox.
Break outs galore
The White Sox saw a lot of their players break out in 2026: Miguel Vargas, Sam Antonacci, Sean Burke, and Grant Taylor.
Miguel Vargas Season to Season Comparison (Baseball Savant)
Vargas, acquired in a three-team trade with the Dodgers and Cardinals, took a massive leap in 2026. He hit .250/.363/.474 with 33 home runs, 93 RBI, 22 stolen bases, and posted a 134 wRC+. His improvement was largely due to increased bat speed as according to Baseball Savant, his bat speed increased from 70.6 mph in 2025 to 73.9 mph in 2026. Vargas was named one of three All-Stars for the White Sox.
Sam Antonacci Profile (Baseball Savant)
Antonacci was promoted to the Majors in April and was a very good contributor. In 140 games, he hit .277/.370/.396 with a 122 wRC+. Though he is not the quality of hitter Vargas is, Antonacci does it with his elite plate discipline. He has very little swing and miss and does not chase pitches.
Sean Burke Season to Season Comparison (Baseball Savant)
Burke took a leap that no one could have expected. In 2026, Burke threw 172.1 innings primarily as a starter (five bulk appearances) and recorded a 3.34 ERA with a 1.20 WHIP. Burke’s improvement was driven by adding a cutter to his arsenal and improved command as he saw his walk rate go from 10.6% in 2025 to 8.7% in 2026.
Taylor showed that his underlying numbers in 2025 were a real indication of who he is. He had a 2.25 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 84 innings with 106 strikeouts. He also operated in many roles, as a closer, high-leverage reliever, or even as an opener.
The future is bright
Regardless of how far the White Sox go in the playoffs, 2026 was a resounding success for them.
They have a bright future ahead of them with lots of young players in the Majors, not even including Noah Schultz, standout reliever Hagen Smith, Tanner McDougal who have all made appearances this year. Down on the farm they have Caleb Bonemer, and the first overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft, Roch Cholowsky.
About The Author
David is a Blue Jays fan and loves all things baseball; the sport itself, the data, and prospect talk. You can find him on Twitter and Substack.
Twitter: https://x.com/_DTalksBaseball
Substack: https://substack.com/@davidtalksbaseball